Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum – Walnut Grove, Minnesota

While in Walnut Grove, I walked through the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum. If I’m going to be honest, this was probably my least favorite LIW place to visit. It had very little Ingalls memorabilia. It had stuff from the tv show, but mostly it had displays on pioneers in general. I very much enjoy the pioneer time period, but I was there for the LIW goodies and this museum just didn’t pull me in. I thought many of their displays were very cheaply done. I did take a lot of pictures, though, so there must have been plenty to see.

It wouldn’t be a pioneer museum without a covered wagon out front.

Top Left: Red pew from the Congregational Church in Walnut Grove that the Ingalls family attended.

Bottom Right: There was a small corner when you first walked in that had real Laura stuff. The quilt was made by Laura & her daughter, Rose. Since I like to sew, that actually was awesome to see. There are also a couple pieces crocheted by Laura. And, the sewing basket & contents belonged to Laura

Middle Left: The book was also hers & she signed it Bessie Wilder. Almanzo called her Bessie & Rose would call her Mama Bess.

Top Right: This is fun since it’s in her own handwriting. It’s a map Laura drew of Walnut Grove while writing the book, On the Banks of Plum Creek.

Bottom left: The real Oleson family as mentioned in On the Banks of Plum Creek. Their real last name was Owens. The back row are the children Frank, Nellie & Willie. Seated in front are the parents William & Margaret.

Top: Little House on the Prairie TV goodies, including the mantel that hung in the Ingalls home.

Bottom: A replica of the Ingalls home on the set of Little House on the Prairie.

The Children’s Chapel.
I’m not sure if this was built just for this museum or if it is a church from the pioneer days, either way it was cute. Many of the furnishings inside came from various church’s in Walnut Grove.

Onion-domed House
I’m not sure exactly what this building is. Even on the museum website it’s only referred to as the onion-domed house. I’m guessing it was an old farm house, maybe built in the late 1800’s.

Inside the onion-domed house was a hodge podge of things you might find in a typical pioneering family home.

Here I am being hoity-toity, but this is a museum where people pay money. Many of their informational graphics looked like they were cut & pasted onto poster board. I don’t think they just looked that way. I think that’s what they really were. It’s like they had the local elementary school put together posters for their museum. Some looked worse than this. Outside that complaint, I actually stood and read this entire poster. We have an old pump organ in my family & I’d like to know more about it. This poster didn’t help me at all with that, but it was still an interesting read.

Top: An old farm house typical of the size Pa would have built & an old schoolhouse.

Bottom: Inside the farm house.

School House

Top: A building filled mainly with items on how & why the pioneers traveled.

Bottom: Inside the traveling exhibit building.

Outside the traveling exhibit building.

I loved this hitching post sign. Can you imagine tying the horse you rode in to town on on this?

This wasn’t my favorite Laura place to visit. But if I were driving by, I’d probably stop in again.

Candling Eggs

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